Why The FBI Is Warning Travelers About Charging Phones At The Airport
By Leslie Veliz
VACATIONS
It's not uncommon to find USB charging stations at the airport, but the Federal Bureau of Investigation's (FBI) Denver division warns travelers against using them.
The FBI warned, "Bad actors have figured out ways to use public USB ports to introduce malware and monitoring software onto devices." This is called juice jacking.
Simply put, using a public charging station could lead to the theft of your private information. This is due to the fact that USB cables also permit the transfer of data.
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) states that there have been no reports of juice jacking incidents, but it's important to be safe rather than sorry while traveling.
Instead of using these public ports, pack a portable charger or wall charger in your carry-on. If you must use a public port, consider using a USB data blocker.